He Just Said That Out Loud
Posted on Friday, November 22, 2019 by
When students open up and share their deepest hurts, it sometimes surprises us. At a recent Campus Life meeting, a leader asked his group of students “what is one thing you would change about your family? “ After a few funny answers about getting rid of pesky younger siblings one student answered, “I wish we had more food at home.” Wow, did he really just share that out loud for his classmates to hear? Then Tyrell took a deep breath and spoke up. “If I could change one thing. It would be that my father was still alive. He died in a car accident when I was five. Life is hard.” The group grew silent. The funny exchanges about little brothers and winning the lottery ceased. The conversation around the circle changed.
The next day the same leader met up with Tyrell to continue the conversation and discover more of his story. Tyrell shared about his family. Mom works three jobs. Stepdad works two. When they are not working they are sleeping. You could hear the pain in each word that he shared. He was desperate for family and a feeling of connection. He was alone. That probably explains why Tyrell never misses Campus Life at his school. He enjoys the fun games and occasional video clip but more importantly he is starved for the conversations with leaders that give him the closest thing he has to a real connection.
When you support Youth For Christ you provide opportunities for these connections for hundreds of teenagers in high schools and middle schools across our community. This past year over 2,500 youth took part in a Youth For Christ program. Many found friendship and positive adult role models. And over 150 placed their trust in Jesus Christ. But there are many more students like Tyrell that we are not yet able to reach. But you can help us change that.